Friedhof der Unschuldigen

Inhalt

Andrew Miller’s new novel is vividly realized fiction played out against the rich cacophony of Paris on the cusp of the French Revolution. Jean-Baptiste Baratte- an ambitious young engineer of modest origin- arrives in the capital in 1785, charged by the King’s minister with emptying the overflowing cemetery of Les Innocents, an ancient site whose stench is poisoning the neighborhood’s air and water. At first Baratte sees his work as a chance to clear the burden of history, a fitting task for a modern man of reason.